All About The Niqab
This is documentary is about the veil worn by women of the Muslim faith...not too long ago this woman called N.S. was asked to remove the niqab in court...even the Prime Minister became involved...does she have the right to practice face covering here in Canada when it comes to court proceeding and citizenship?...is this really about feminism...ensuring that women are equal and not subservient...or is it more about being fearful of Muslims since ISIS made its presence known...here is this young woman's perspective on it and the battle in court for her to continue wearing her niqab...What are your thoughts?...
Comments (72)
Like a lot of women, they will tell you it's their choice when they are dominated by their men. You should take it with a pinch of salt.
And as for looking elegant. Try telling that to their men. They basically want to see their women covered up. Some even have their eyes covered.
It will change and the sooner the better. It could be very damaging for the young girls who are forced to wear it and at the same time be expected to be part of a modern society.
Don't get me started! I know quite a lot about this stuff.
Did you watch the video?...she is standing up because of principle...hardly sounds like a meek person...who is beaten at home by her husband or controlled...if that were true...I would think the husband wouldn't want her to take her relatives to court...or allow her to speak and to be filmed by the journalists at the Fifth Estate...JMO...
I don't know about the recent events but will check it out...were all the women wearing niqab?...
Will have to get more details...not sure what it is about...
That was exactly my point.
For me personally as I watched the video I felt this lady was honest and open about her dress standard. That she was just standing up to something that was personal to her. Like she said she does it for God, not for man. I can truly relate to that. She sounds a lovely lovely person with her ideals of how she live.To me there is nothing wrong with that. She also comes a strong woman.
As long as I can see someones eyes I am ok. I believe the eyes are the windows to the soul. You can`t have any untoward feelings and it not show in your eyes.
I am all for freedom in how someone lives their religion or believes as long as it does not violate another person. As in harm them in any way.
Do we not all have dress standards one way or another? I know I do. Things I would and would not wear. I also believe in modesty of dress. I am grateful nobody takes away my right to dress how I choose.
I agree with so many comments on here of who have worded things waaaaay better than I.
Good blog Lou.
Hope you have had a great day, celebrating being a woman .. on this Mothers day.
For me personally as I watched the video I felt this lady was honest and open about her dress standard. That she was just standing up to something that was personal to her. Like she said she does it for God, not for man. I can truly relate to that. She sounds a lovely lovely person with her ideals of how she live.To me there is nothing wrong with that. She also comes a strong woman.
As long as I can see someones eyes I am ok. I believe the eyes are the windows to the soul. You can`t have any untoward feelings and it not show in your eyes.
I am all for freedom in how someone lives their religion or believes as long as it does not violate another person. As in harm them in any way.
Do we not all have dress standards one way or another? I know I do. Things I would and would not wear. I also believe in modesty of dress. I am grateful nobody takes away my right to dress how I choose.
I agree with so many comments on here of who have worded things waaaaay better than I.
Good blog Lou.
Hope you have had a great day, celebrating being a woman .. on this Mothers day.
Thanks for your comment...she comes across as a strong minded person...no shrinking violet!!...it is kind of a backward standard to have in regards to the conduct of women in the courts...one minute women are judged by how much makeup or lack of clothing women have on...then in the next breath...refuse to hear a case due to women donning too much clothing on...
I know that hats and sunglasses are not permitted as a standard rule in courts of law but what about the turbans the Sikhs have?...we are so culturally diverse...we need to bend a little to accommodate people...
Thanks for the warm wishes and have a Good Mother's day to you!!
I was wondering if that was ever an issue in the court room?...may check it out...
I doubt very much there has ever been an issue about wearing religious head dress in court here in the UK. It may be something to do with Sikhs having a lot of respect in the British Indian Army, or it may be that the courts are a little less petty and more respectful.
As for wearing the niqab in a British court, I found this which was interesting:
I read another report which talked of women being required to unveil their faces when giving evidence, but from behind a screen so only the jurors and court officials could see their face. The screen would ensure discretion from the public gallery and reporters.
That was another world back then...I didn't see that kind of good manners growing up...and some of our customs are no longer relevant...but I think coming up with a compromise as you said would have been better than the harsh stance the courts took...
We should be able to challenge our government...and demand change if needed...laws need to be changed to reflect today's environment...
Thanks for the information...it is better to find a solution than to make people feel that they don't belong...or assume she doesn't belong here because of her ethnicity...she is Canadian!!...glad to hear others are accommodating to these women...will look at the link provided...
What if it's a smokescreen for less obvious, more secretive political action? What if it's used to garner support for war crimes, such as the ones the former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has been alleged to be involved with, but not prosecuted for? What if it's ultimately about power, wealth and control and once again women are being used as pawns in the game?
If we collectively learn to hate and depersonalise groups of people, it's then not difficult to get people to support their destruction and death. Surely, the objectification of others is exactly the behaviour of an extremist.
Is it any different insisting that women don't wear the Niqab than it is insisting they do? It's still about removing their right to self-determination, free will and choice.
Is it any different insisting that women don't wear the Niqab than it is insisting they do? It's still about removing their right to self-determination, free will and choice.
Read the news article you posted...that women on trial for intimidating a security guard who refused to take off her niqab...fortunately someone listened to the guard although it wasn't pursued at first...and oddly it seems that her connection to her husband's crime wasn't apparent during her trial with her brother...correct me if I got it wrong...it seems it was on purpose...the issue of the niqab was used as a smoke screen?...
By continuing to wear the veil NS is playing that same game that started all the problems. ie her relatives' culture.
If she broke away from her veil she may feel liberated instead of subservient.
I'm afraid that I don't see this the way others are.
I know people in her situation and I think it's interesting that she hesitated when asked whether she wished her daughter to wear a veil.
I say again that it will change and the sooner the better. Woman hiding this way are playing the game and are oppressed.
I'd like to see her walk tall. I see her wearing the veil as a confirmation that she SHOULD be hiding. By her own admission, she goes both ways depending on how exposed she's feeling.
She may well benefit from counselling after her childhood experiences. Wearing the veil may be a copying strategy for her in some way. That's her journey and she should have control over it, not anyone else.
I don't understand what you mean here, Rain. Could you explain, please?
How do you know she feels subservient. That wasn't the message she was portraying when interviewed, unless you mean her comment about bowing down to no one, no man and only bowing down to god.
I get some of what you're saying, but I do think it's important to work from her value framework rather than try to impose our own. She's entitled to make her own choices and not have anything imposed upon her from anyone.
What do you find interesting about that?
It may well change in time, but it's oppressive to decide for someone else, whatever the decision.
The standard dress code in my house (my daughter, granddaughter and myself) is T-shirt and knickers. We don't feel exposed in our own home, but we cover up to go outside the home. We wouldn't expose ourselves like that in public. Is that so very different?
Of course it must be in her own time but what was the fascination about this story that we should discuss it?
A woman who can be filmed and interviewed in such a way is no shrinking violet.
What went on in her case is common in her culture so it's a shame that she hasn't rejected the veil which I feel would have made more of a point.
I'm definitely not getting your stance on this and we will have to agree to differ.
This story didn't have to become so public...but the court failed to come up with a solution or compromise and failed to treat her with respect...she has the right to question practices that maybe too old to uphold...such as the dress code in the courts...
Thanks for all of your input...it is amazing what evokes such strong feelings towards others' practices and customs...
The niqab may not be worn in all of the Muslim practicing countries...perhaps certain sects...does it matter why she wears it or should it be seen as a right?...dress codes serve a function but allowances should be made to embrace cultural differences...
Thanks again for contributing...
I am a little bit late on the discussion but I just want to address all your original questions.
After listening to her personal account I believe that as a citizen living in a country like Canada which tolerates religious freedom she is free to practice what she wants and in fact she does her job very professionally dressed in her cultural or religious practice.
Now on the legal part of the court, regardless of her practice and freedom she, as everyone else has to abide and respect the law. When the judge demands for her to take it off is not because of her denial of her cultural and or feminism. It is a law that applies to all.
Now whatever is the reason for them to wear it is not the issue more than the clash of culture on a country they have so chosen to embrace.
But for the woman in question, she seems very comfortable being who she is and wear it regardless of how the others perceive her.
Now on the post of Zman, what an encumbrance but they are proud to be who they are and so be it.
I have a feeling it will change though. In my birth country the Philippines, our way of dress in the traditional way is celebrated with pride and value but it has evolved due to practical purposes. On fiestas and celebrations, there is still a glimpse of how it was.
Almost all Filipinos around the world that I have seen hardly has a clue anymore as to how our old way of dressing look like.
Respect to how they dress is just as much as respect to the way we, the west have chosen to dress.
Such a funny cartoon...but it is relevant...as the debate of what is acceptable for women to wear...
Thanks for dropping by...sad to see the niqab debate in regards to our courts' dress code became a political platform...it could have been simpler to compromise...see Rex's comments from the National News program...
Countries such as Canada have had so much change in regards to its population...once a country dominated by European ethnicity...now a mixture of people living quite different culturally speaking...seems to me we need to decide what rules are important to keep and what can be discarded...to be able to live with out so much tension among us...